Leningrad rangefinder

[npwalter]

Hi there,
I've been a fan of soviet cameras since years and now I'm trying to "restore" a Leningrad camera from '61.
I have successfully replaced the curtains and now I'm dealing with the rangefinder. A real challenge.
After having dismantled and disassembled it to glue some parts, as you know, over time it tends to crumble, now there are two serious problems.
The first is due to the stripping of the threads of the three small headless screws, the ones that block the right prism that form the little telemetry image.
The second problem concerns the calibration of the rangefinder itself.
Even at the minimum focusing distance, the little telemetry image appears completely misaligned and all shifted to the right, and there is no way to get it back.
I tried to loosen the three screws on the top left of the eyepiece and slightly move the triangle on which the prism that form the large viewfinder image is pivoted, but unfortunately it doesn’t work.
I also tried to loosen the screw on the bottom that locks the lever that transmits the rotation to the mentioned prism, but still without any result.
Which is the right procedure to calibrate the Leningrad rangefinder?
Can anybody please help me?
Thank you very much in advance for your attention.
npwalter

 

[Peter de Waal]

Hi,
have you seen these older RFF threads:
Leningrad Repairs?
https://www.rangefinderforum.com/forums/showthread.php?threadid=152726
Thoughts on the Leningrad.
http://www.rangefinderforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=116868&page=2
Leningrad anyone have one?
http://www.rangefinderforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=52994

 

[kotokot21]

Here's a link to the Russian rangefinder forum thread about Leningrad calibration. https://rangefinder.ru/club/viewtopic.php?p=212034

I think, google translate can handle this 🙂

 

[npwalter]

Hi,
have you seen these older RFF threads:
Leningrad Repairs?
https://www.rangefinderforum.com/forums/showthread.php?threadid=152726
Thoughts on the Leningrad.
http://www.rangefinderforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=116868&page=2
Leningrad anyone have one?
http://www.rangefinderforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=52994

Yes, Peter, thank you very much, I have already seen all these threads.
Unfortunately I couldn't find detailed instructions on calibrating the Leningrad rangefinder.

 

[npwalter]

Here's a link to the Russian rangefinder forum thread about Leningrad calibration. https://rangefinder.ru/club/viewtopic.php?p=212034

I think, google translate can handle this 🙂

Thanks to you too, kotokot21, I had already translated and read the long thread finding many interesting information.
Unfortunately, even here, I couldn't find detailed instruction about Leningrad rangefinder calibration.

 

[David Hughes]

Hi,


Try the 7th post here:-


https://www.rangefinderforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=116868&page=2


As far as I can see it covers the correction of the RF in the Leningrad.


Edit:- I forgot to mention that the guy on ebay with the ID "kubanoid" does an English instruction manual for the Leningrad.



Regards, David

 

[wolves3012]

Hi,


Try the 7th post here:-


https://www.rangefinderforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=116868&page=2


As far as I can see it covers the correction of the RF in the Leningrad.


Edit:- I forgot to mention that the guy on ebay with the ID "kubanoid" does an English instruction manual for the Leningrad.



Regards, David

David, if you scroll down to post #23 and onwards, there's a section where I posted how to adjust the RF on a Leningrad - with pictures.

To the OP: If you open the camera up and adjust the screws, please read my posts carefully and note the extreme fragility of the block of alloy the optics are on. DO NOT apply downward pressure to the adjustment screws or I pretty much guarantee disaster will result!

 

[npwalter]

Thank you very much to all.
In the end I managed to fix the rangefinder somehow.
Summing up:
- slightly rotated the prism which forms the large image of the viewfinder and glued it in the new position
- slighlty adjusted the screw on the bottom that blocks the lever that transmits the rotation to this prism
- roughly adjusted the screws that adjust the right prism that forms the small telemetry image
- inserted into they holes the three small headless screws that block the movement of this prism and glue them in place
At the moment the rangefinder is roughly working and returns sufficiently correct information.
Waiting to find a worthy substitute.
Thanks again.